{"id":3511,"date":"2025-07-21T18:06:32","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T18:06:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/?p=3511"},"modified":"2025-07-21T18:10:59","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T18:10:59","slug":"2025-first-half-review-with-a-twist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/2025-first-half-review-with-a-twist\/","title":{"rendered":"2025 First Half Review With a Twist"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The twist is that iShares ETFs are used throughout this analysis.\u00a0 This way we can analyze the first half of the year while also reviewing iShares unique history along with their strengths and weaknesses for investors in the context of today\u2019s ETF marketplace.\u00a0 This article also relies heavily on the nomenclature system of ETFdb.com, a TMX VettaFi company, along with its data.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All 5,200+ stocks US and Canadian stocks, 16 sector groups, 200+ industries, and 700+\u00a0 ETFs have been updated.\u00a0 Two-week free trial available: <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.valuengine.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">www.ValuEngine.com<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares was launched in the beginning of 2001.\u00a0 Prior to that time, the most successful ETFs had been launched by exchanges in conjunction with index providers.\u00a0 This includes the S&amp;P 500 Trust (<strong>SPY<\/strong>); the S&amp;P 400 MidCap Trust (<strong>MDY<\/strong>); and the SPDR\u00ae Dow Jones\u00ae Industrial Average<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2120<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ETF Trust (<strong>DIA<\/strong>). The emphasis was on creating trading vehicles for hedge funds and institutional investors.\u00a0 They were not envisioned by their creators as alternatives to mutual funds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares changed all that.\u00a0 iShares was launched to provide a one-stop shop to offer financial advisors and planners democratized access to institutional caliber index funds beyond the S&amp;P 500.\u00a0 This would include comprehensive total market index products, fixed income index products, tactical sector, and single country products, etc. \u00a0 Given this vision and consistency, this first-half review focuses on capital markets ETFs through the lenses of iShares.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are some fast facts about iShares today:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Out of the approximately 3900 ETFs listed in the US as of June 30, 422 of them, roughly 11% , are iShares.\u00a0 This includes:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">280 Equity ETFs of which 123 US only, the other 157 either int\u2019l or global;\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">106 bond ETFs;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20 Multi-Asset ETFs;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">6 Commodity ETVs;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">6 Real Estate ETFs;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2 Cybercurrency ETFs; and<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1 Preferred Stock ETF.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Taken altogether, this comprises $4.2 Trillion Assets Under Management, roughly 32% of the total ETF assets under management in the US.\u00a0 With this backdrop, we examine how the iShares performed in the first half of 2025 from various perspectives.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Starting with the 10 largest ETFs in terms of assets under management, the landscape is captured in this table.<\/span><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Ticker<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Name<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>ETF Database Category<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Assets ($ Bil.)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>YTD Price Change<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>5 Year Returns<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>YTD FF<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>ER<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong> Annual Dividend Yield %<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IVV<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Core S&amp;P 500 ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Large Cap Growth Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$619.6\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">6.13%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16.94%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$548.31\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.03%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.3%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IEFA<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Foreign Large Cap Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$142.4\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20.91%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">11.11%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$2,844.79\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.07%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3.1%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">AGG<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Total Bond Market<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$128.8\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4.04%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">-0.75%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$6,576.03\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.03%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3.8%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IWF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Large Cap Growth Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$111.0\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">5.94%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">18.40%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">($987.68)<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.19%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.4%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IEMG<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Emerging Markets Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$95.5\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16.36%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">7.60%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$5,881.96\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.09%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3.1%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IJH<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Core S&amp;P Mid-Cap ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mid Cap Growth Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$94.8\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.12%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">13.60%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$616.87\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.05%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.4%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IJR<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Core S&amp;P Small-Cap ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Small Cap Blend Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$79.2\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">-4.51%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">11.89%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">($3,987.30)<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.06%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2.2%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IBIT<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Currency<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$74.4\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">15.38%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">N\/A<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$14,884.02\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.12%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.0%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EFA<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI EAFE ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Foreign Large Cap Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$64.4\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20.27%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">11.17%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1,570.71\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.32%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2.9%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IWM<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares Russell 2000 ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Small Cap Blend Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$63.2\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">-1.85%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">10.22%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">($5,924.56)<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.19%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.2%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Current ValuEngine reports on all covered stocks and ETFS can be viewed<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/valuengine.com\/dashboard\/report\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> HERE<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This list of top 10 ETFs consists of 8 Equity ETFs, 1 Bond ETF and 1 Cybercurrency ETV.\u00a0 It is no surprise that <strong>IVV<\/strong>, iShares\u2019 Core S&amp;P 500 ETF, is the family\u2019s top asset gatherer. Its $619 billion trails <strong>VOO<\/strong>, Vanguard\u2019s S&amp;P 500 ETF by about $70 billion. But <strong>IVV<\/strong> still qualifies as the world\u2019s third largest ETF behind <strong>VOO<\/strong> and <strong>SPY<\/strong>, the SPDR ETF Trust which has $755 billion.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The top performing ETF for the first six months was <strong>IEFA<\/strong>, the iShares Core EAFE ETF.\u00a0 Its price gain was nearly 21%, more than three times the gain of <strong>IVV<\/strong>. \u00a0 <strong>IEFA<\/strong> is also the second largest iShares ETF with $142 billion in AUM.\u00a0 The first six months of 2025 is one of the few periods since 2009 that international developed-market equities have outperformed US equities.\u00a0 A large reason for this was the significant weakening of the dollar with respect to many major foreign currencies.\u00a0 For example, the Euro appreciated 20% with respect to the dollar. <strong>IEFA<\/strong> also had the highest dividend yield among the top 10 equity iShares at 3.1%.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The largest yield overall in this group belongs to the <strong>AGG<\/strong>, the iShares Core US Aggregate Bond ETF at 3.9%.\u00a0 <strong>AGG<\/strong> is the third largest iShares ETF and the only bond ETF to make the top ten.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The winner in fund flows by a wide margin was <strong>IBIT<\/strong>, the iShares Bitcoin Trust. Gaining a net $15 Billion in flows into the fund in just six months is quite an accomplishment.\u00a0 The Bitcoin Trust\u2019s presence as #8 in total assets is rather remarkable considering that it was established only 18 months ago.\u00a0 In contrast, the other ETFs on the list have been accumulating assets for more than 20 years.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It should be noted that <strong>IBIT<\/strong> is an Exchange Traded Vehicle (ETV) using the \u201cETF wrapper\u201d rather than a true ETF.\u00a0 Most ETFs are open-end mutual funds holding securities.\u00a0 Commodity, Cybercurrency and precious metal ETVs are grantor trusts.\u00a0 They may be subject to different tax treatments and there could be other ramifications.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Interestingly in a strong six months for equities, three of the iShares on this list suffered net withdrawals.\u00a0 All were US equity funds, including the iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF and two Small Cap ETFs, <strong>IWM<\/strong> based on the Russell 2000 Small Cap index and <strong>IJR<\/strong> based on the S&amp;P Small Cap 600 Index.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Beyond the top 10, we also looked at all\u00a0 the iShares to determine the best performers in the first half of the year.\u00a0 Here are the ten largest price gainers.<\/span><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Symbol<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Name<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>ETF Database Category<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Assets ($ Bil.)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>YTD Price Change<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>5 Year Returns<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>YTD FF<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>ER<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong> Annual Dividend Yield %<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EPOL<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Poland ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Europe Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$0.5\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">57.26%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">17.36%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$168.13\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.60%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4.3%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">RING<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sector &#8211; Materials<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1.4\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">56.55%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">10.31%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$80.30\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.39%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.0%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SLVP<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Global Silver Miners ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sector &#8211; Materials<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$0.3\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">54.68%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">8.18%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1.17\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.39%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.7%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWZS<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Brazil Small-Cap ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Latin America Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$0.2\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">44.76%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4.61%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$34.65\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.60%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2.8%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWO<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Austria ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Europe Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$0.1\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">44.38%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">20.12%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$41.25\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.50%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4.9%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWP<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Spain ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Europe Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1.3\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">43.40%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">18.04%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$170.71\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.50%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3.0%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWY<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI South Korea ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Asia Pacific Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$4.9\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">41.05%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">6.55%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$493.60\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.59%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.8%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EUFN<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Financials Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$3.9\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">39.32%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">22.55%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1,381.14\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.48%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4.1%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWI<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Italy ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Europe Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$0.5\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">36.18%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">18.77%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$64.91\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.50%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2.9%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWG<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Germany ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Europe Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$2.9\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">35.17%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">12.41%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1,617.12\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.50%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.6%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">EWW<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">iShares MSCI Mexico ETF<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Latin America Equities<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$1.8\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">31.67%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">17.17%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$484.00\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.50%<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4.4%<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Current ValuEngine reports on all covered stocks and ETFS can be viewed<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/valuengine.com\/dashboard\/report\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> HERE<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eight of the top 10 gainers are single-country funds, benefiting significantly from the falling dollar in the first six months of 2025.\u00a0 <strong>EPOL<\/strong> was the top performer, gaining more than 57%.\u00a0 The next two highest performers were ETFs of companies that mine precious metals.\u00a0 This includes <strong>RING<\/strong>, iShares MSCI Gold Miners ETF and <strong>SLVP<\/strong>, iShares MSCI Global Silver Miners ETF. The highest gain of AUM was recorded by <strong>EWG<\/strong>, the iShares MSCI Germany ETF.\u00a0 The largest dividend yield among the top 10 gainers was <strong>EWO<\/strong>, the iShares MSCI Austria ETF.\u00a0 It should be noted that all of these ETFs have less than $5 billion in assets under management.\u00a0 Add in the fact that many hold securities that do not trade during all US trading hours, and the result is much wider bid-ask spreads than with larger US stock and bond ETFs.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In terms of individual stocks, the top contributor to the strong performance of <strong>IEFA<\/strong>, the Core MSCI EAFE ETF, was BAE Systems PLC, a UK defense contractor, with a first-half price gain exceeding 400%.\u00a0 The ticker symbol of its American Depository receipt is <strong>BAESY<\/strong>.\u00a0 The top price gainer among Russell 3000 stocks was Aeva Technologies, ticker symbol <strong>AEVA,<\/strong> with a 283% return.\u00a0 Aeva Technologies is building the next-generation of sensing and perception for autonomous vehicles and beyond.\u00a0 It is based in Mountainview, CA.\u00a0 The company is currently rated 3 (Hold) by ValuEngine.\u00a0 It is forecast for a healthy 16% earnings gain but is highly overvalued according to our valuation model.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The top S&amp;P 500 performer was Palantir Technologies, <strong>PLTR<\/strong>, The California-based artificial intelligence software platform stock gained more than 100% during this period. It is currently rated 4 (Buy) by ValuEngine. It also has a very rich valuation according to our valuation model.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Financial Advisory Services based on ValuEngine\u2019s research models: <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.valuenginecapital.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">www.ValuEngineCapital.com<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In summary, the first half of 2025 saw very volatile equity, fixed income, precious metal, and cryptocurrency markets but by June 30, most market-leading ETFs righted themselves and registered gains for the periods.\u00a0 As usual, there were some niche exceptions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What does all this mean for the second half of the year?\u00a0 Generally, there are very few conclusions to be drawn.\u00a0 Value-oriented hedge funds sometimes look at the largest gainers as potential shorts looking for mean reversion, especially among recent gainers in danger of missing increased earnings expectations.\u00a0 Most studies on this theory have concluded that mean reversion is a valid concept but knowing the point of the eventual downturn for a stock currently on a steep upward trajectory is nearly impossible.\u00a0 To the extent that positive trends continue until they don\u2019t, shorting such stocks too early can be very expensive.\u00a0 At ValuEngine, we prefer a more systematic, stochastic and complex multivariate approach.\u00a0 That said, it is always useful to quantify recent performance\u00a0 for a greater understanding of the current ecosystem.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That said, the strongest trend that shaped the outperformance of non-US ETFs and stocks over their US counterparts in dollar-denominated terms was the weakness of the dollar relative to other currencies.\u00a0 Given the uncertainties surrounding US policy changes and their global effects, most currency experts see a rebound for the dollar unlikely during the next six months.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">_____________________________________________________________________<\/span><\/p>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By Herbert Blank<\/span><\/h5>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Senior Quantitative Analyst, ValuEngine Inc ( <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.valuengine.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">www.ValuEngine.com<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> )<\/span><\/h5>\n<h5><a href=\"mailto:support@ValuEngine.com\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">support@ValuEngine.com<\/span> <\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(321) 325-0519<\/span><\/h5>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All of the over 4,200 stocks, 16 sector groups, over 250 industries, and 600 ETFs have been updated on<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.valuengine.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> www.ValuEngine.com<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Financial Advisory Services based on ValuEngine research available through<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.valuenginecapital.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ValuEngine Capital Management, LLC<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Free Two-Week Trial to all 6,000 plus equities and ETFs covered by ValuEngine<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/ww2.valuengine.com\/products-and-pricing\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> HERE<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Subscribers log in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/valuengine.com\/dashboard\/login\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">HERE<\/span><\/a><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The twist is that iShares ETFs are used throughout this analysis.\u00a0 This way we can analyze the first half of the year while also reviewing iShares unique history along with their strengths and weaknesses for investors in the context of today\u2019s ETF marketplace.\u00a0 This article also relies heavily on the nomenclature system of ETFdb.com, a &#8230; <a title=\"2025 First Half Review With a Twist\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/2025-first-half-review-with-a-twist\/\" aria-label=\"More on 2025 First Half Review With a Twist\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[130,1,39],"tags":[2616,2618,2621,746,1760,1719,1731,1804,2617,2619,2620,2622,1713,1699,1687,1644,28,1659,1700],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3511"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3511"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3511\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3514,"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3511\/revisions\/3514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.valuengine.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}